Most unrealistic attempt at realism

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What shows try to be realistic but end up being completely far out showing the writers are completely out of touch.

For me, it's gotta be All Grown Up, they're all supposed to be around 10, yet there already far into dating, kissing, and in long term relationships. That's crazy, most kids are simply not like that at that age.

[Wussycat]

Rocket Power - Enough said.

Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles - Tried to tackle the very real problem of prejudice, but ended up making the villains unrealistic, like they were from a corny anti-racism PSA.

Edit: It seems nearly every show has unrealistic bullies. Most of the time, bullies are pure evil (Angelica Pickles) or literally act/look like animals (dinosaur-like bullies from KND).
Doug and Recess appear be the only ones with realistic bullies.

[Neo Ultra Mike]

The Simpsons actually did try and be more realistic in the early seasons (despite the yellowish skin look and Matt Groening orignally wanting the show to be more fantasy based then it ended up being) and did succeed for the most part. By Season 4 though more and more wacky stuff was written in for the sake of the joke and by the end of Season nine you really couldn't the show that realistic. And by now the writers have defintley lost touch (for the most part) so I would think that counts.

[Mandouga]

Way. Too. Many. To. Mention.

Furthermore, it extends beyond just animated material. It also includes live-action movies (theatrical, and made-for-tv), and TV shows (terrestrial and cable).

IMO, it's a really big problem. Don't get me wrong, realism isn't a bad thing, but at the same time it can actually hurt a project rather than help it. If you focus too much on realism, it becomes so grounded in reality that it lacks the ability to be flexible in its writing, and can actually detract from the project itself.

Case in point: the DCAU. Obviously B:TAS was different and groundbreaking from previous portrayals. A Superman series was inevitable, as was a Justice League series. However, I'd have to say that S:TAS started showing signs of it (especially the two part finale "Legacy"), but it came to a head near the end of Justice League; specifically the series finale. Without spoiling anything, let me just say that Justice League Unlimited was the moment that the DCAU "jumped the shark", because at this point it focused less on writing, and more on showing off how "realistic" the franchise's writing was. For me, it was like "we get it already". For me, the final nail in the coffin was the Batman Beyond "connection", which IMO shouldn't have existed in the first place (again w/o spoiling anything, originally, the timeline of BB was just a possibility, but JLU "officially" made it "canon"); it felt like it was totally made up on the spot just for the sake of making BB "officially" canon. However, a new season premiered after that. This made me wonder if it was possible for a franchise to jump the shark twice.

In the end, depending on the individual project, there's really nothing realistic about realism, it's just the same generic writing over and over again. Instead of being unique, and actually evolving, it's just the same old things that have been done a million times. At this point it goes into the issue of hypocrisy in the industry, but that's another story.

I'm sorry for the long post, but there was a lot I had to say about this and even more still, but for now I'll just leave it at that.

[tb4000]

Most of those shows that focus on a female protagonist dealing with school and life attempt to come across as grounded in reality, but end up being ridiculously over the top, mostly due to the female bully always being some stuck up Mean Girl type that is way too cartoony in contrast with the rest of them.

[Wussycat]

Another unrealistic thing about The Goliath Chronicles was Xanatos and Fox suddenly giving up their life of crime.

S&P clearly had a problem with them being complex villains. They could only be completely good or completely evil.

[Blackstar]

For me, it's gotta be All Grown Up, they're all supposed to be around 10, yet there already far into dating, kissing, and in long term relationships. That's crazy, most kids are simply not like that at that age.

ANY cartoon that has kids 10 and under acting like teenagers is unrealistic. Kids are not hanging out at the malt shop, going to the prom and babysitting at age 8.

[Scythemantis]

Edit: It seems nearly every show has unrealistic bullies. Most of the time, bullies are pure evil (Angelica Pickles) or literally act/look like animals (dinosaur-like bullies from KND).

Neither of these shows are an attempt at realism. Everything in KND is especially supposed to be strange and exaggerated, so it really doesn't count here :)

[Dr.Pepper]

I always thought it was weird how in some cartoons it shows elementry aged kids having seperate classes for each subject or have subjects they wouldn't teach in elemeentry. Like how on an episode of Foster's where 8-year-old Mac was seen in chemistry class or on Ed Edd n Eddy where Jimmy was in algebra. I geuss at my elementry school in the 4th and 5th grade one of the teachers would teach math and the other English and we would switch teachers for an hour a day but that was as close as it got.

[Dudley]

ANY cartoon that has kids 10 and under acting like teenagers is unrealistic. Kids are not hanging out at the malt shop, going to the prom and babysitting at age 8.

I really, REALLY hate it when cartoons do that. Why do they do it?

[tb4000]

KND is some type of alternate universe type of deal where the adults are actually at war with the kids and vice versa, with attempts to even kill them at points, which is actually pretty dark when you think about it. If God forbid they ever chose to do a live action version, Chris Columbus would be the one to do it.

[Caswin]

For me, the final nail in the coffin was the Batman Beyond "connection", which IMO shouldn't have existed in the first place (again w/o spoiling anything, originally, the timeline of BB was just a possibilityActually - even though more than one person has decided to believe otherwise - I believe Bruce Timm has specifically stated that yes, it was canon.

In the end, depending on the individual project, there's really nothing realistic about realism, it's just the same generic writing over and over again.If realism were indeed the same generic writing over and over again, I don't think this topic would exist. For there to be a "most unrealistic attempt", there must be successful realism somewhere else.

[Dr.Pepper]

Another thing that popped into my head is how the teachers on the Simpsons smoke at school. I mean I know its a joke but still its weird.

[Wussycat]

Some characters in King of the Hill are unrealistically dumb.

Example: Bill not understanding what Hank meant when he said something bad would happen to Dale's mower.

[Dr.Pepper]

If God forbid they ever chose to do a live action version, Chris Columbus would be the one to do it.
Word on the street is that there may be a live action movie but nothing is confirmed

[I.R Joey]

They'll always hold a special place in my heart but certain Gundam series (like Wing and Zeta) qualify I think.

As for American cartoons how about G.I Joe?

[J. B. Warner]

The Simpsons actually did try and be more realistic in the early seasons (despite the yellowish skin look and Matt Groening orignally wanting the show to be more fantasy based then it ended up being) and did succeed for the most part. By Season 4 though more and more wacky stuff was written in for the sake of the joke and by the end of Season nine you really couldn't the show that realistic. And by now the writers have defintley lost touch (for the most part) so I would think that counts.

The staff originally had plans for "The Simpsons" to be as realistic as possible. But as the show progressed, they learned that the show's universe was allowed to be more than a little outré - after all, it is a cartoon, and what fun is a cartoon if it has to emulate all the rules of live action?

Surrealism reared its head as early as Season 1, with Homer being mistaken for Bigfoot and Bart instantly learning French when it was most convenient. Season 2 continued in that vein, particularly in Homer's miraculous survival of two consecutive falls down Springfield Gorge. Season 3 launched with a huge mental patient who thought he was Michael Jackson and the show never looked back - the shows just got more and more outlandish throughout Seasons 4, 5, and 6, and even the more down-to-earth Seasons 7 and 8 had their wacky moments. But one question remains - did you laugh? If the answer is yes, then what difference does it make? Realistic or not, as long as "The Simpsons" is funny, there's really no reason to complain.

Of course, the most recent years have been both surrealistic and unfunny, so people have every legitimate reason to despise them, but that's another story.

[Elven Moon]

One thing that rather bugs me about Pokemon is that they send 10 year olds out into the forest to fend for themselves, perhaps going days without meeting another person or finding a town, etc. I guess if they were raised to be very independent and mature, but still... most 10 year olds I know would not be able to do that.

So yes, I agree about portraying kids as these mature, almost teenager or adult-like beings.

And anothing thing, why weren't the cops in DuckTales ever alarmed by the foods Ma Beagle sent her boys? I mean, you've got sticks of dynamite sticking out, bombs with frosting on them, etc. It didn't look a LITTLE strange to them? Yeah, I know it's all part of the humor... and I doubt that real criminals would actually walk around in masks all the time...

But I guess these shows weren't going for realism, so... I'll shut up now...

[Anthonynotes]

>>Another thing that popped into my head is how the teachers on the Simpsons smoke at school. I mean I know its a joke but still its weird.<<

Might be a throwback to the old days when people were allowed to smoke in buildings/offices... but yeah, sure it's just a joke.

Re: surrealism in early Simpsons seasons: Yes, they had wacky elements, but they still oftentimes had episodes that had at least one foot in reality (compared to, when the Simpsons debuted, the "standard" TV cartoons of its time----Looney Tunes, Scooby Doo, Tiny Toons, etc.)... at least compared to the 2000s-era seasons you cited where it sounds as if "anything goes"...

[Dr.Pepper]

Another thing is how on Rugrats, Tommy, Phil, and Lil can't say single word or simple sentances to the adults and why can't Chuckie talk in colplete conversations.

[Dantheman]

One thing that gets me about the whole "kids as mature people" thing is the way the kids on South Park act. You gotta admit,for fourth graders,they don't generally act the way kids at that age would. Having a adult-level cognizance of various matters,being exposed to things that if I had saw them at their age I'd have been scarred for life,stuff like that.

[DBZNarutoWarrior]

For me, it's gotta be All Grown Up, they're all supposed to be around 10, yet there already far into dating, kissing, and in long term relationships. That's crazy, most kids are simply not like that at that age.

All Grown up was a horrible attempt at realism, and a horrible attempt in a SHOW period. It was a horrible idea, and it really annoys me when they have 2-10 year olds acting like teenagers. It just isn't that way in the real world(99% of the time), so why do they do it?